Twinkle’s journey to Manila

Twinkle was born in California. Her parents are Lucky (+) and Mochi. I brought her to Manila when she was two and a half months old. I applied for the necessary documents at the nearest Philippine Consulate and paid for the required permits so she could travel with me on Philippine Airlines. I think I paid $375 for her one way ticket to Manila. I placed her in a dog carriage, left her with water in a nursing bottle, some food and a thick blanket so she could survive the long 12-13 hours flight.

She was a bit shaken when I claimed her from the baggage section in NAIA. A bit frightened but otherwise okay. She cried a little when she saw me, parang naglalambing so I could get her fast out of the cage.

It wasn’t her choice to live in the Philippines. It was Edmund’s idea “iuwi mo yung isang tuta nila Ailen, yung babae”. When I was thinking of an appropriate name for her, Twinkle was the first name that came to my mind. My kids were asking why Twinkle? Basta, that’s the name.

We didn’t anticipate what kind of dog Twinkle would be like. We were used to having shih tzus that were melancholic, tahimik lang and hindi malikot. Twinkle was the exact opposite of a shih tzus demeanor. She was like Spiderman kayang-kayang akyatin ang mataas na bakod namin. She could remove whatever barricade or extra fences Edmund put up to prevent her from slipping out. She outsmarted everyone by sprinting outside the gate or jumping over the bakod.

She was also fearless. She didn’t know she was little, kahit german shepherd inaangilan nya. Our Dalmatian dog Lucy almost killed her in a brawl. Kahit nga may-sakit na sya, pagnakita pa rin nya si Lucy, she still growled at her.

For some time she was Edmund’s walking companion. She and her son Jack.
A few years ago Edmund noticed that Twinkle was losing her stamina. He observed that when they went walking, she would stop after two blocks. She would pant heavily and turn violet. Edmund would end up carrying her the rest of their walk.

Because of Twinkle’s kakulitan, we confined her in the garage. She didn’t stay inside our house because she would just try to get out. She was allowed to roam around the garage and around our house when Lucy is not around.

We love Twinkle and all our dogs so much. When they’re sick, Oyen wastes no time in bringing them to the vet. We give them the necessary medicines and vitamins and extra loving care.

Twinkle’s cancer has spread all over her body. Operation and chemo are not options because she’s old and weak and might not be able to take them. The vet advised putting her to sleep but I refused. Putting her to sleep is tantamount to killing her. No.

We still hope that she feels better and not be in pain. Bakit ganun lagi na lang cancer? Naaawa ako sa kanya. If only dogs could say something. If only they could express what they were feeling. I don’t want her to suffer but at the same time I don’t want her to die. My tears fall just by thinking about the possibility that Twinkle would be gone soon. I pray that she still lives longer.